Moonrise/Chapter 20
Chapter description :A mouse slips out of Leafpaw’s grasp. She glares in frustration at the tiny hole where the creature vanished. She is out collecting herbs for Cinderpelt and, due to Firestar’s insistence that she not go out alone, she has Sorreltail with her. Sorreltail mews that it was bad luck, but Leafpaw retorts that she would’ve caught it if she hadn’t been so hungry she couldn’t see straight. She begins backing out from under the bush, and suddenly recognizes its leaves and bright red berries. Cursing, she hisses that it’s all over her paws and points out the deathberries to Sorreltail. Sorreltail shivers and says that they should find some water and wash it off quickly. Leafpaw is puzzled by the horror in her friend’s eyes, as Sorreltail is one of the bravest cats she knows. She asks Sorreltail if she’s okay, and Sorreltail explains how when she was a kit, she saw something she wasn’t supposed to see and was fed deathberries by Darkstripe to keep her quiet. Cinderpelt saved her. Leafpaw exclaims that that’s terrible, and pushes her nose into Sorreltail’s fur. Sorreltail mews that it’s all over now, and at least they don’t have to worry about Tigerstar anymore. Leafpaw thinks about Mothwing and Hawkfrost, and that maybe that trouble isn’t all over. :The two she-cats travel closer to the Thunderpath, and Leafpaw finds a pool where she rinses the berry juice from her paws. Leafpaw notices a patch of chervil, and is pointing it out when she is interrupted by the appearance of a giant monster, which crushes the herbs. Sorreltail lets out a startled yowl and flees into the nearest tree. Leafpaw watches in frozen horror as the monster rips an ash tree from the ground. Debris rains down on her, and Sorreltail leaps down from her now unsafe tree and nudges Leafpaw into a run. The two cats pelt away until the roar has lessened into a faint rumble behind them. :Sorreltail gasps that the Twolegs are taking the forest, and soon there’ll be nothing left for them. Leafpaw looks back and spits that she hates them. Sorreltail encourages Leafpaw to come look for herbs near the RiverClan border. Leafpaw nods and follows the tortoiseshell warrior through the woods. She thinks that StarClan must be grieving too, if they can do nothing to stop the destruction. Sorreltail asks what they’re going to do, and mentions how Ferncloud was so starved she couldn’t keep Larchkit alive. Leafpaw thinks of the grieving Ferncloud, miserable Dustpelt, feeble Frostfur, and dead Dappletail, and how Cinderpelt expects an outbreak of Greencough every day. She mews softly that sometimes she thinks the Twolegs won’t stop until they’re all dead. Sorreltail asks Leafpaw if she or Cinderpelt has received a message from StarClan, and if their warrior ancestors have abandoned them. Leafpaw desperately wants to tell her friend about the message from StarClan, but had promised to keep it a secret. She is also starting to think that the cats sent by StarClan aren’t coming back. :Leafpaw and Sorreltail approach the RiverClan border. Leafpaw calms down at the absence of Twoleg monster noises. She tastes the air and spots a rabbit nearby. She yearns to catch it, but remembers Dappletail’s death and Firestar’s warning. Sorreltail mutters that it’s infuriating, and Leafpaw nods. Sorreltail spots a squirrel, and drops into the hunter’s crouch. She creeps toward her prey while Leafpaw silently cheers her on. Sorreltail leaps, but the squirrel flees from her grasp. With a furious shriek, Sorreltail bolts after her prey. She chases it up a tree, and Leafpaw, realizing that she’s in RiverClan territory, cries a warning. Sorreltail ignores her, misses the squirrel, and falls from the tree. Sorreltail scrambles to her paws with a curse, and before Leafpaw can warn her again, a familiar tabby shape appears from behind the tree. A paw slams down on Sorreltail and traps her there. Hawkfrost growls that there are ThunderClan cats trespassing on their territory. Characters Major *Leafpaw *Sorreltail Minor *Hawkfrost Mentioned *Cinderpelt *Tigerstar *Darkstripe *Blackstar *Mothwing *Ferncloud *Larchkit *Dustpelt *Dappletail *Frostfur *Squirrelpaw *Brambleclaw }} Notes and references Category:Moonrise Category:Chapter subpages Category:The New Prophecy arc